Thursday, December 28, 2006

Performing Hajj At-Tamattu’

The Hajj has three modes, The Hajj-At-Tamattu’, Hajj-al-Qiran and Hajj-Al-Ifrad.Hajj At-Tamattu’ is the most recommended for those who want to have more time in the Holy land.

In this particular type of Hajj, one need to perform ‘Umrah during the Hajj months [Syawal, Dzul-Qa’edah and the first nine nights of Dzul-Hijjah] and to perform the Hajj in the same year with a sacrifice slaughtered in Mina on the day of Eid ul-Adha [The 10th day of Dzul-Hijjah] or during the days of at-Tashreeq [11th, 12th and 13th of Dzul-Hijjah].

The pilgrimage may remove the Ihram and continue his normal activities between “Umrah and Hajj. It is necessary to make the Tawaf and the Sa’ie twice, the first time for ‘Umrah and the second time for the Hajj.

The sequence of the At-Tamattu’ Hajj is as follows.

1. UMRAH

A. Enter into the state of Ihram

Ihram is the intention of the person willing to perform all rites of ‘Umrah when he arrives at the Miqat. Each direction coming into Makkah has its own Miqat.

It is recommended that the one who intends to perform Hajj makes Ghusul, a shower with the intention to purify one’s self and to be ready for UMRAH, perfumes his body, but not his garments, and puts on a two- piece garment with no headgear. The garments should be of seamless cloth. One piece to cover the upper part of the body, and the second to cover the lower part.

For a woman the Ihram is the same except that she can wear any kind of wide garments, and should not use perfumes at all and her dress should cover the whole body decently, leaving the hands and the face uncovered.

It is followed by a two raka’at sunnat Ihram prayer before the niyyat.

B. Proclaiming the Intention [Niyyat]

All acts of worship are preceded by an appropriate proclamation of Niyyat:

O Allah! I intend to perform The Umrah. Make it easy for me and accept it from me. And I enter into the state of Ihram for Your sake O Allah SWT.

[Here I am at Your service. O my Lord, Here I am. No partner that You have. Here I am. Truly, The Praise and the Provisions are solely Yours, and so is the Dominion. There is no partner You have.]

C. Tawaf

When a Muslim arrives in Makkah, he should make Tawaf around the Ka’abah. This is done by circling the Ka’abah seven times in the counterclockwise direction, starting from the black stone with Takbeer and ending each circle at the black stone with Takbeer, keeping the Ka’abah to one’s left.

Then the pilgrim goes to Maqam Ibrahim [Ibrahim’s station], and performs two raka’ah behind it, close to it if possible, but away from the path of the people making Tawaf. In all cases one should be facing the Ka’abah when praying behind Maqam Ibrahim a.s.

D. Sa’ie

The next rite is to make sa’ie between Safa and Marwah. The pilgrim starts Sa’ie by ascending the Safa. While facing the direction of the Ka’abah he praises Allah, raises his hands and says Takbeer “Allah-u-Akbar” three times, then makes supplication to Allah. Then the pilgrim descends from the Safa and heads towards the Marwah.

One should increase the pace between the clearly marked green posts, but should walk at a normal pace before and after them. When the pilgrim reaches the Marwah, he should ascend it, praise Allah and do as he did at the Safa. This is considered one round and so is the other way from the Marwah to the Safa. A total of seven rounds are required to perform the sa’ie

There are no required supplications for Tawaf or for Sa’ie. It is up to the worshipper to praise Allah or to supplicate Him with any acceptable supplication or to recite verses of the Qur’an. There are no many specific supplications that the Prophet SWS used to recite during the rites.

E. Shaving the Head or Cutting the Hair

After Sa’ie, the Muslim ends his Umrah rites by shaving his head or trimming his hair (women should cut a finger tip’s length from their hair). At this stage, the prohibitions pertaining to the state of Ihram are lifted and one can resume his normal life.

After shaving one is permitted to remove the Ihram and only to put it back before Hajj wukuf.

2. HAJJ

A. Dzul-Hijjah 8 [Day of al-Tarwiah].

A Pilgrim performing Hajj Tamattu' should proclaim the intention Hajj after putting on the Ihram once again, from the place where he is staying, on Dzul-Hijjah 8.

i. Proclaiming the Intention [Niyyat]

All acts of worship are preceded by an appropriate proclamation of Niyyat:

O Allah! I intend to perform The Hajj. Make it easy for me and accept it from me. And I enter into the state of Ihram for Your sake, O Allah SWT.

After the Niyyat it is recommended to repeat the well-known supplication, called Talbiyah, as frequently as possible from the time of Ihram till the completion of Umrah.

Men are recommended to utter the talbiyah aloud while women are to say it quietly.

It is better to leave for Arafat in the afternoon of Dzul-Hijjah 8th so as to avoid the congestion due to the throng of millions of Hujajj.

B. Wukuf at Arafat [9th Dzul-Hijjah]

The duration of Wukuf at Arafah is from the noon of Dzul-Hijjah 9 until the fajar of Dzul-Hijjah 10.The pilgrims stay in Arafat until sunset and leave after Maghrib for Mina through Muzdalifah. At Arafat It is permissible to shortened and combined prayers of Dzuhur and Asar, during the time of Dzhuhr and save the rest of the day for glorifying Allah and supplications asking forgiveness.

A pilgrim should make sure that he is within the boundaries of Arafat, not necessarily standing on the mountain of Arafat, he should also be sure that he has spent any part of the night –even a few minutes-within Arafat.

The Prophet SAW said: “I stood here on this rocky hill and all Arafat is about a standing [assembly] place” [Muslim].

One should keep reciting Talbiyah, glorifying Allah the Greatest and repeating supplication. It is also reported that the Prophet SAW used to say the following supplication:

“There is no deity worthy of worship except Allah, the one without a partner. The dominion and the praise are His and He is powerful over everything”.

Anas Ibn Malik was asked once how he and his friends used to spend their time while walking from Mina to Arafat in the company of the Prophet SAW. Anas said: “Some of us used to say out Talbeyah, others used to golrify Allah the Greatest and the rest used to repeat supplications. Each one of us was free to worship Allah in the way he likes without prejudice or renunciation of his right”. (Bukhari).

In the vast plain of Arafat, tears are shed, sins are washed and faults are redressed for those who ask Allah for forgiveness and offer sincere repentance for their wrong doings in the past. Happy is the person who receives the Mercy and Pleasure of Allah on that particular day.

Before leaving for Muzdalifah, the pilgrim performs Maghrib and Isha prayers combined, shortening the Isha prayer to two Raka’ah.

C. Mabit in Muzdalifah [Night 10th Dzul-Hijjah].

Soon after sunset on the day of Arafah, the pilgrims leave for Muzdalifah quietly and reverently in compliance with the advice of the Prophet SAW who said when he noticed people walking without calmness: “O people! Be quiet, hastening is not a sign of righteousness”. [Bukhari].

If you are strong and young, you may follow the Prophet's Sunnah, spending the whole night in Muzdalifah and praying the Fajr Prayer there. After Fajr, the Prophet headed to Al-Mash’ar Al-Haram, supplicated Allah until the twilight became clear, and then moved to Mina before the sun rose.

Alternatively, it is permissible to leave after midnight and pray fajar in Mina to avoid the crowd.

Prophet SAW keeps reciting the Talbiyah, glorifying Allah the Greatest and mentioning the name of Allah until the time of stoning Jamrat Al-Aqabah, Al-Jamrat-al-Kubra in Mina.

D. In Mina [10, 11, 12 & 13 Dzul-Hijjah]

i. Stoning Jamrah Al-Aqabah 10th Dzul-Hijjah

When the pilgrims arrive in Mina, they would proceed to Jamrah- Al-Aqabah where they stone it with seven pebbles glorifying Allah “Allah-u-Akbar” at each throw and calling on him to accept their Hajj. It is important to cease reciting Talbiyah when you start throwing pebbles. From now on repeat the Takbir of ‘Eid:

Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar

La ilaha illa Allahu Wallahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar, wa lillahi al-hamd.

[Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest, and there is no god but Allah. And Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest, and to Him belongs all praise.]

The time of stoning Jamrat Al-Aqabah is after sunrise. The Prophet SAW threw the pebbles late in the morning and permitted the weak people to stone after leaving Muzdalifah after Midnight. The size of the pebbles should not be more than that of a pea as described by the Prophet SAW who warned against exaggeration. The pebbles can be picked up either in Muzdalifah or in Mina.

The pilgrim should spend there the days of Tashreeq [11th 12th and 13th Dzul-Hijjah]. During each day, and after Dzuhur prayer until the midnight, the pilgrim stones the three stone pillars called “Jamrah”: The smaller Jamrah-al-Ula, the medium Jamrah-al-Wusta and Jamrat Al-Aqabah, glorifying Allah “Allah-u-Akbar “with each throw of the seven pebbles stoned at each pillar.

A pilgrim may leave Mina to Makkah on the 13th of Dzul-Hijjah or on the 12th if he wishes, there is no blame on him if he chooses the latter, but he has to leave before sunset if not he must stay in Mina till he throws the pebbles the next day (13th).

ii. Slaughter of Sacrifice on 10th Dzul-Hijjah

After stoning Jamrat Al-Aqabah, the pilgrim goes to slaughter his sacrifice either personally or through the appointment of somebody else to do it on his behalf. A pilgrim should slaughter either a sheep, or share a cow or a camel with six others. This animal is called hadi.

The following conditions should be met in your hadi:

A goat should be no less than 1 year old; a sheep no less than 6 months on condition that it is fat; a cow no less than 2 years; and a camel 5 years.

The animal should be healthy and free from physical defects. It should not be one-eyed, limping, mangy, or very thin and weak.

You may find it difficult to slaughter and distribute the hadi meat. So the Islamic Development Bank has set up booths around Makkah and Mina to facilitate the purchase of coupons for slaughtering and distributing hadi animals.

iii. Shaving the Head or Cutting the Hair on10th Dzul-Hijjah

Another rite on the tenth day after offering one’s sacrifice is to shave his head or to cut some of the hair. Shaving the head is, however preferable for it was reported that the Prophet prayed three times for those who shaved their heads, when he said in the meaning of : “May Allah’s Mercy be upon those who shaved their heads”. [Bukhari, Muslim].

For women, the length of hair to be cut is that of a fingertip.

The stoning of Jamrat Al-Aqabah and the shaving of head or the trimming of hair symbolizes completion of Tahalul Awal, marks the end of the first phase of the state of Ihram and the lifting of its restrictions except for sexual intercourse with one’s spouse.

Stoning Jamrat Al-Aqabah, slaughtering the sacrifice and shaving the head or cutting part of the hair are preferred to be in this order, as it is the order that the Prophet SAW did them. However, if they are done in any order, it is also acceptable.

E. Tawaf Ifadah [10 or 13 Dzul-Hijjah]

After completing the shaving and sacrifice, there are two options available for the pilgrims in conducting the Tawaf Ifadah. The Tawaf performed on the 10th Dzul-hijjah, the fundamental rite of Hajj after changing the Ihram. It is also called Tawaf Az-Ziyarah.

One could take a trip to Masjidil-Haram to perform the Tawaf. Or remain in Mina until 13th Dzul-Hijjah and choose to leave Mina to Makkah for Tawaf and Sai’e after performing the last Jamrah. This is permissible and preferable hence it is safer.

This Tawaf differs from the Tawaf of ‘Umrah in two things:

1. There is no idtiba` [exposing the right shoulder for men] in it, simply because people in this Tawaf do not wear ihram. They are permitted to wear their ordinary clothes after throwing the pebbles and shaving or cutting their hair.

2. There is no ramal [jogging] in it.

Otherwise, it is done in the same way Tawaf of ‘Umrah is done. After Tawaf Prophet SAW drank the Zamzam water.

It is recommended especially if women fear that their period might start before they make Tawaf to perform Tawaf Al-Ifadah on Dhul-Hijjah 10. Yet it is acceptable to delay it until before leaving Makkah; in this way you need not also make Tawaf Al-Wada` [Farewell Tawaf].

F. Sa’ie

The pilgrims perform the Tawaf and Sa’ie and one need not perform the shaving rite after that. Now one enters into Thalul Thani and it is absolved from the state of Ihram. All the restrictions of ihram, including intimate relations with your spouse, are no longer applicable to you.

i. Returning to Mina

After performing Tawaf Al-Ifadah and Sa`ie the pilgrims then return to Mina and spend there the days of Tashreeq [11th 12th and 13th Dzul-Hijjah].

During each day, and after Dzuhur prayer until the midnight, the pilgrim stones the three stone pillars called “Jamrah”: The smaller, the medium and Jamrah-Al-Aqabah, glorifying Allah “Allah-u-Akbar “with each throw of the seven pebbles stoned at each pillar.

F. Farewell Tawaf

Farewell Tawaf is the final rite of Hajj. It is to perform another Tawaf around the Ka’abah. Ibn Abbas said: “The people were ordered to perform the Tawaf around the Ka’abah as the last thing before leaving Makkah, except the menstruating women who were excused.” [Bukhari]

The Excellence of Sunnah Solāt In the Name of Allāh, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful; All the praise and Thanks is due...

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